The Standard Editorial Board of 2012-2013

If students were to think of their relationship with their school, it’s likely that the connection would take the form of a Venn diagram. There are elements that would solely manifest themselves within school and there will be a few that relate solely to his or her life outside education.
As with most Venn diagrams, the most complex field to define is the territory that overlaps both sides. Combining two sets of properties, ideas or rules that are meant to be distinct seems an ill-fated idea. Such is the case when attempting to combine too much of students’ lives inside and outside of school.

Ill-fated ideas lead to ill-fated consequences, and the recent disavowal of parties is starting a dialogue that none of us want to have, since it shouldn’t be an problem to begin with.

The intervention of the administration into the social lives of High School students is unwarranted and, to be frank, a bit bizarre. The school is attempting to seek a solution to a problem that neither it nor any other institution will ever be able to find a way of dealing with the “hazardous” atmosphere that teenage life surround students with. Instead, they are worsening the issue by involving themselves in student’s lives outside the classroom.

The situation can be envisioned as one that is analogous to that of the Prohibition era. It was only after alcoholic substances were outlawed that things began to get ugly. Organized crime, bootlegging and corruption became rampant. When alcohol was banned, it became even more of a coveted substance, a commodity that could be traded on the down-low.

Of course, it would be foolish to declare that underage drinking is the only danger at hand and it can be safely assured that no alcohol cartels shall be formed. The point is, however, that whichever substance is banned shall see its demand rise, not fall. An increased presence by the administration in student’s socials lives, attempting to control what they do and don’t do, will only increase the thirst for condemned activity.

Underage drinking is inevitable. The psychology of teenagers can’t be altered or suppressed by a policy their school mentions. Parents are very aware of this, because it’s nothing new.

Students should not have to worry about the actions performed in their social lives possibly affecting their well-being inside school. Student lives inside and outside have been involved in an awkward and often conflicting marriage for too long. A clear cut distinction must be made between the two. The people in control of students’ lives inside of school have no right to take any unauthorized control outside of it. These people in control, the administration figures in the High School, should he social aspects of lives students have once they leave school. It has zero connection to the schooling students receive and therefore holds no importance to the people in charge of students’ school lives. If this demeanour were to continue, students could be placed into an unhealthy position where they feel everything they do has implications inside school.
The message at heart is not to discourage the school from issuing warnings; rather, it is to disclose that whatever warnings the school issues to parents or students will be to little avail. Yes, perhaps they may be successful in shutting down a party, but no amount of phone calls or emails can even hope to disassemble a mentality. Instead students will become, as they have now, increasingly upset with the school. A healthy relationship between the school and its students will be ruined the more administration interferes with social lives. Social events aren’t just a part of the student agenda, they are a part of life, and they, more often than not, are strictly on one side of the diagram. So please, teachers, leave us kids alone.

standard@asl.org